For theirs is just one of the firms to branch out and grow thanks to a not-for-profit Enterprise Centre in Manchester.

Former hairdresser Alison Hornsby, from Bury, is behind the social enterprise centre, which if offering a combination of low-cost office accommodation and business support close to the city centre.

"The Enterprise Centre's mission is to support entrepreneurship. Funding from the European Regional Development Fund means that it can offer top quality city-centre offices at unbelieveable rates. From just £30 a week, a company can gain a city centre office," she says.

Alison, is working in partnership with Adrian Carridice-Davids, regional director of the Community Action Network, to operate the centre on Rochdale Road.

It offers not just short-term office facilities to help small businesses get off the ground, but support services, including IT facilities.

And Alison has a wealth of experience on which to draw to help would-be entrepreneurs.

After training as a hairdresser, she moved into teaching then into training and business management.

Her long list of achievements includes designing courses for Manchester's City College, which were used as a pilot for hairdressing students with learning disabiltities and later sold on by the college to other establishments throughout the UK. She also developed methods of assessment for deaf students.

As a director of a training and development company she went on to work in partnership with colleges, universities, voluntary organisations and large national companies.

She was spurred on to launch the Enterprise Centre because, she says, she spotted a gap in the market.

"I realised there was a need for a one-stop shop to help small and medium sized businesses, somewhere that they could get office space at a cheap rate and have access to support services, all under one roof," she says.

Verde Floral/Plant Designers, is run by Dave Fitton and his wife Claire who say they have found the centre ideal. They have received help with their business and development plan, secured £1,500 grant funding for expansion, and advice on recruitment.

The family home is in Ireland, from where Claire runs the admin side of the business, whilst Dave commutes to the mainland, returning home for a four day-break every two-or three weeks.

But Manchester is the heartland of their business which has now grown to have clients nationwide, including Pizza Express, La Tasca, Manchester United, and the prestigious apartment block No 1 Deansgate, Manchester.

"The centre is an excellent base for us at this stage. It is great to have someone on hand with Alison's wealth of experience, who is not too close to the business, so you can bounce ideas off," says Dave.